Return To Play

Four starters returned to practice this week in green (non-contact) jerseys, including junior TB Elijah Williams. He slightly separated a shoulder in the Gators' 47-7 victory against Georgia on Saturday, but he said the injury would not affect him Saturday against Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tenn. ''I'm definitely playing,'' said Williams, who leads the Gators with 544 rushing yards this season. ''They're just taking a precaution. If they hadn't told me it wasn't separated, I wouldn't even know.

When hardcore heroes A Day to Remember perform in Orlando, it always seems like a homecoming show - even if the hit-generating band belongs to the world now. Although A Day to Remember came together about a decade ago in Ocala, their path to world domination has been handled by Orlando management company Fly South Music Group. And most of the band members have relocated to O-town, where they like the barbecue at 4 Rivers Smokehouse, among other things. In concert, the band is known for giant inflatable props, such as the enormous amplifiers and heads that were part of its much-heralded main-stage shows on the 2011 Vans Warped Tour.

Forward Walter Berry, who led St. John's to the Big East Conference title, will return to play his senior year. ''I thought about it turning pro when I thought there was a chance I would be the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft. It deadline is going to come May 3 and go, and I'll still be at St. John's.''

Schuyler Rimmer has appreciation for Boone's storied sports rivalries, such as Thursday night's boys basketball home game pitting the Braves against old Orlando rival Edgewater. Long before the 6-foot-9 junior center hit high school, he spent formative years tucked into an office at Boone where his mom once worked as a guidance counselor. That made things difficult when, some 17 months ago, Rimmer left that cocoon to try Cornerstone, a nearby charter school. That experiment for an honors student didn't last long.

The eighth-ranked University of Florida women's volleyball team opened the season with a 3-0 (30-19, 30-17, 30-20) victory of the Jacksonville Dolphins Monday night in Gainesville. Senior Jane Collymore led the Gators with 16 kills while sophomore Amber McCray set a career-high with 10 kills. The Gators return to play Friday at home in Aquafina Volleyball Invitational. From WIRE Reports

A concussion is a condition of impaired functioning of the brain that occurs as a result of a violent blow or impact.The American Academy of Neurology recently developed guidelines to make on-the-spot evaluations. The academy wrote the guidelines with sports injuries in mind, but said the guides can apply to other activities:Grade 1 concussions:''Transient'' confusion (inability to maintain a coherent stream of thought); no loss of consciousness; symptoms disappear in less than 15 minutes.

DECIDING HE is not ready for the pros after all, Lamar Odom wants to return to play at Rhode Island, university officials said Thursday. The school is helping Odom prepare an appeal to the NCAA to try to revive his eligibility. Odom had signed with an agent. Under NCAA rules, anyone who signs with an agent is barred from returning to collegiate athletics.NETSEX-NEW Jersey guard Drazen Petrovic, who died in a car accident six years ago at 28, and former Brazilian team member Pereira Maciel Ubiratan have been added to the nominees for the Basketball Hall of Fame.

WON'T GO BACK. Mac O'Grady, upset over the ''inconsistent'' greens at the Riviera Country Club, said he won't return to play in the Los Angeles Open next year. ''You're at the mercy of the frivolous conditions of a putting surface,'' he said after finishing 45th with a four-day 286 total and earning $1,602. ''They are so inconsistent . . . that's why the Nicklauses and the Watsons and those players don't come back. It's too much like a public golf course.''

QUARTERBACK NEIL Lomax, 30, said Friday his arthritic left hip was so bad it was unlikely he could play and that he will decide by Monday whether to retire. Lomax: ''I haven't been able to get out there and do the things I'm capable of doing. I can't really take part in the drills or take part in the offense and perform at the National Football League level - not to where I'd be satisfied. To play my position, it takes a lot more than doing a lot of pushups, situps and stretches. Realistically, I can't play now. That's where it is.''CINCINNATI BENGALSOFFENSIVE TACKLE Joe Walter, recovering from surgery to rebuild a knee he wrecked in the final game of the 1988 season, says he is hoping to return to play by October.

Bright spots: Freshman tailback Willie McClendon ran hard. Wide receiver Willie Snead caught six passes for 66 yards, his finest game for Florida.Lowlights: The offense was poor most of the day, unable to sustain any kind of consistency. Even the defense, which had carried this team, broke down in the second half. There were too many illegal-procedure penalties and personal fouls called against Florida.On the mend: Starting tailback Wayne Williams sprained his left knee early in the second half and did not return to action.

Around their Notre Dame teammates, Ben Turk and Jordan Cowart stood out in a crowd. The Florida natives, however, fit right in with everyone else during the team's recent visit to SeaWorld. "We're going to Sea World and it's hot and we're in tank tops and everyone is making fun of us while they are in sweat suits," Cowart said. "It's kind of funny. " Both were teammates at St. Thomas Aquinas - Turk a punter and Cowart a long snapper - and both knew what to expect weather-wise when the team traveled to Central Florida this week to take on Florida State in the Champs Sports Bowl on Thursday.

TALLAHASSEE — UCF's men's basketball team got a big boost Monday night when guard Marcus Jordan and forward P.J. Gaynor returned from suspensions to play at Florida State. The pair was benched for the season opener last Saturday for an unspecified violation of team rules. Center Josh Crittle was, too, but he did not make Monday's trip from Orlando. Senior A.J. Rompza, who is part of an NCAA investigation, has been withheld from action indefinitely. Jordan started and had eight first-half points.

Many area girls basketball standouts are competing in the AAU nationals and super showcases at ESPN Wide World of Sports, but one of the hottest topics among the players, coaches and fans is offseason player movement. Two years ago, Shannon Cranshaw was one of Central Florida's best basketball players, starring as a freshman for Daytona Beach Father Lopez. Last season she transferred to Greater Atlanta Christian in Norcross, Ga., and helped lead the team to the state's Class AA state championship.

The Sacramento Kings' owners are threatening to relocate their team because they can't get the city to build a new arena. That news is unsettling to Ryan Anderson , a native of El Dorado Hills, Calif., who rooted for the Kings growing up. "It would be really weird," Anderson said about the Kings moving. "It would be tough for a lot of people. There are still a lot of Kings fans. " Anderson, whose family still lives in the Sacramento area, said some of his best memories as a child are making the half-hour drive to Sacramento to watch the Kings play.

Yao versus Dwight. Has a nice ring to it, right? But Friday night's game between the Houston Rockets and the Orlando Magic at Amway Center didn't feature a matchup of two of the game's most dominant centers. Injury-plagued Rockets center Yao Ming played just five games this season before the team pronounced him out for the rest of the year. On Thursday, he underwent surgery to repair a stress fracture in his left ankle, an operation that may force him to retire. Yao sat out last season as he recovered from foot surgery.

GAINESVILLE – Florida WR Chris Rainey is one step closer to returning to play. After missing five games with a team suspension following his September arrest, Rainey could be available when the Gators (4-3, 2-3 SEC) play Georgia in Jacksonville on Saturday. "As of now, he's done everything he's supposed to do," coach Urban Meyer said on the SEC teleconference Wednesday. "(Thursday) is the deadline that I set with him and myself, and I'll just do a thorough check again (Thursday)

Arizona Diamondbacks INF Chad Tracy and C Miguel Montero increased their baseball-related activities Friday, although Arizona Manager Bob Melvin said their return to play is a ways off. Tracy is recovering from right-knee surgery. His rehabilitation was set back significantly because of a blood clot that required medication. Montero has been sidelined because of a fractured right index finger. Colorado Rockies Second-year SS Troy Tulowitzki finished 2-for-2 with a double and a run scored to raise his spring average to .324.

HAVING WORKED out a deal to keep the Cincinnati Bengals from leaving, the city now must obtain the Cincinnati Reds' approval for the agreement. The deal is designed to keep the NFL team at Riverfront Stadium at least through 2000, while the city studies construction of a bigger football stadium.DALLAS COWBOYSNATE NEWTON, arrested on driving while intoxicated charges for the second time in 39 months, said he's grateful no one was seriously injured in an automobile accident. ''I'm sorry something like this happened, but I really don't care what happened to me,'' Newton said.

GAINESVILLE -- Florida's men's basketball team will make a rare visit to Orlando this fall when it faces Missouri-Kansas City on Nov. 30 at Amway Arena. The contest, part of UF's 31-game regular-season schedule, represents a homecoming for Gator guard Nick Calathes and forward Chandler Parsons. The players led Lake Howell High to the 2007 state championship and likely will make their lone collegiate appearance at Amway. "It's phenomenal," said Gary Parsons, Chandler's father. "I'm excited, and it should be exciting for the kids.

Arizona Diamondbacks INF Chad Tracy and C Miguel Montero increased their baseball-related activities Friday, although Arizona Manager Bob Melvin said their return to play is a ways off. Tracy is recovering from right-knee surgery. His rehabilitation was set back significantly because of a blood clot that required medication. Montero has been sidelined because of a fractured right index finger. Colorado Rockies Second-year SS Troy Tulowitzki finished 2-for-2 with a double and a run scored to raise his spring average to .324.